I'll just cut to the chase: I, for one, would love it sooo much more if it had a handle. It'd be so much easier to work with.Fellow curly girls know the drill- most of us prefer detangling in the shower with conditioner in our hair to provide extra slip for our grooming implements. Well, conditioner in this case isn't the only thing giving slip...the Tangle Teezer is a fan of slipping right out of my hand and totally going projectile in the shower when it's wet. I also want to note that because this brush fits directly in the palm of my hand, I also partially wind up finger-combing my hair and snagging my nails because my fingers hang over the edges of the brush. I have a TON of hair and it seems like adding a handle to this brush would definitely make my detangling sessions go by a bit faster as well. All that being said, I really do love the Tangle Teezer. It is THOUSANDS of times better than my crappy wide tooth comb which did nothing but rip gobs of my hair out no matter now gentle or slow I was. However, I can't say that I really prefer my Tangle Teezer to my regular old Goody paddle brush. Why? The Goody brush has a handle of course! It's a lot more easy to use but it's certainly not as gentle on my hair as the Tangle Teezer is. The Tangle Teezer also defines my curls a lot more than the paddle brush does. Though my 3b hair is insanely dense and typically rather knotted by the time wash day rolls around, I really don't find that I have to brush tip to root or even section my hair off when I use this. It glides right through my knots with no tugging or pain and seems to get through every layer of hair with relative ease. I also haven't noticed any damage to my hair from using this product either! As far as similar products go, the Tangle Tamer Max is supposedly comparable to the Tangle Teezer but has a handle. That said, it's handle is flat rather than round and I've read that it's no easier to hold on to in the shower than the genuine Tangle Teezer is. Shaun P. & the gang have recently come out with a more shower friendly version of the Tangle Teezer (with non-slip coating I believe) but I don't think I'll being running to my nearest Sally's to pick one up anytime soon. It is also oddly shaped and again without a handle. :( Over all, I do love this brush but I can't help but wish it was more easy to use.